Employment Tribunal cases in England and Wales have reached a record high of 70,000 between April and June this year, as new employment law reforms take hold.
Single Employment Tribunal Receipts, which are cases brought by an individual against an employer, rose by almost 30 per cent during those three months compared to the same period a year ago.
The data, published by the Ministry of Justice, reveals the scale of pressure now bearing down on a system that was already struggling before the latest wave of legislative change.
Open caseload figures, representing Tribunal cases that remain unresolved and active, rose by 51 per cent during the same period, as receipts continued to exceed disposals over the last year.
More than half a million claims are now sitting in the Employment Tribunal system overall, leaving employers and employees facing longer waits, higher costs, and prolonged uncertainty.
Michelle Morgan, head of employment at Gardner Leader, said the figures show that “despite attempts to build capacity, the government is failing to adequately resource an already overstretched system, leaving both employees and employers trapped in a process that is increasingly unable to deliver timely justice.”
Morgan also warned that cases outside of London are now being listed as far ahead as December 2029, describing the situation as “a postcode lottery, with outcomes depending as much on geography as the merits of the case.”
Chloe Grant, senior associate at disputes law firm Bellevue Law, said that “the latest Employment Tribunal statistics show a system buckling under the strain,” with more individual claims waiting to be heard than ever before.
Concerns had already been raised that the new workers’ rights introduced under the Employment Rights Act would add significant further pressure to an already heavily backlogged Tribunal system.
James Townsend, partner at Payne Hicks Beach, said that “employment litigation is on the rise, and employers cannot afford to be complacent, bearing in mind further looming changes under the Employment Rights Act 2025 is designed to further strengthen workers’ hands, if and when disputes arise.”
The combination of rising case volumes, stretched resources, and incoming legislative reform means both employers and employees face a more complex and time-consuming path to resolution than at any previous point in the Tribunal’s history.
Legal experts are urging businesses to review their employment practices now, rather than waiting until disputes arise, given the increasingly punishing timelines and costs associated with Tribunal proceedings.